Vehicle manufacturers generally employ two different types of carpet construction methods. In a first method, which can be referred to as a two-step process, a topcoat is formed in a tool and then trimmed by a water-jet process. The topcoat includes a pile adhered to a mass back. To form the top coat into a shape that is appropriate for placing inside an automobile, a topcoat blank is placed in the tool and a press contacts the topcoat to form the topcoat into the appropriate shape. The formed topcoat blank is then trimmed and transferred to a separate jig that is used to apply individual pieces of a die-cut backing, which is also referred to as insulation material. Using this two-step process, the topcoat does not share the same shape, holes, or trim lines as the backing since each has been formed and cut in separate processes.
In another method, the topcoat and backing are formed together in a single tool and are then trimmed by a water-jet process. In this method, the topcoat and backing have the same shape, holes and trim lines because they have been formed together before the trimming operation. This method can be referred to as a one-step carpet process which has been found to provide improved noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) characteristics versus a typical two-step carpet process described above.
When using the one-step process, because the backing has been affixed to the topcoat prior to any trimming, the thickness of the automobile carpet is a function of the thickness of the backing (or insulation material) and the thickness of the topcoat. The thickness of the automobile carpet can be a factor when considering passenger foot space within a vehicle. Problems can result by providing an automobile carpet within an area of the vehicle where there is small clearance for vehicle occupant foot space.